Gani was shot at by the militants in Pinglena area of Pulwama district, 31 kms from Srinagar on Monday afternoon, a police official told PTI. According to Times Now, the PDP leader was on his way to Puranpora. The PDP leader was rushed to hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.

The attack is said to be in line with terrorists' recent attempts to demotivate Kashmiris from taking part in democratic processes.

The Valley saw violence on 9 April, when the Srinagar Lok Sabha by-election was held, with a large part of the electorate avoiding the process. The voter turnout was very low at just 7.14 percent. Repolling in 38 polling booths then saw just 467 votes cast in the first four hours.

According to reports, eight civilians were killed in firing, and scores of people including servicemen, were injured in violent clashes during the bypoll. Official estimates put the injured count at 300 — 200 civilians and 100 security personnel.